[texhax] Control blank area at beginning of chapters

Tue Oct 28 12:09:48 CET 2008

Thomas Dukleth wrote:
> Reply inline:
> 

would you please post something that actually compiles without errors


> 
> On Thu, October 23, 2008 9:58 am, Lars Madsen wrote:
>> Thomas Dukleth wrote:
>>> I am using the memoir document class for a book and would like to
>>> control
>>> or eliminate the large vertical blank area at the beginning of each new
>>> chapter.
>>>
> 
> [..]
> 
> I have commented out my custom chapter style based on the memoir class and
> used the following code based on the titlesec package.  My question about
> modifying this or some other code remains.
> 
> \titleformat{\chapter}[display]{\filcenter\sc\Huge}{\thechapter}{0pt}{}{}
> 
>>> How can I modify this code or something else to control the large
>>> vertical
>>> blank area at the beginning of each new chapter?
>>>
>>>
>> it is a bit hard to know exactly what space you are talking about. Could
>> you post a minimal (but full) document displaying a sample chapter, such
>> that we can just copy'n'paste to our own systems and see if we can fix
>> your problem. That makes it a lot easier for us.
> 
> [...]
> 
> I hope the following minimal but full LaTeX document is sufficiently
> minimal while full enough to demonstrate the issue.
> 
> Look at how the table of contents page title, "CONTENTS", appears at a
> higher point on the page than chapter titles.  Before modifying the table
> of contents title with the tocloft package using the following code, the
> table of contents title had appeared at a lower point on the page much
> more like the chapter titles.
> 
> \def\tableofcontents{\section*{\centering CONTENTS}\@starttoc{toc}}
> 
> Chapter titles in the minimal LaTeX document are "ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS", "THE
> HOUSE OF MAPUHI", and "THE WHALE TOOTH".
> 
> \documentclass[12pt,english,oldfontcommands]{memoir}
> \usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
> \usepackage[utf8]{inputenc}
> \usepackage{geometry}
> \usepackage{titlesec}
> \usepackage{titletoc}
> \usepackage{subfigure}
> \usepackage[titles,subfigure][tocloft]
> \usepackage{fix-cm}
> \usepackage{lettrine}
> \usepackage{graphics}
> \usepackage{longtable}
> \usepackage{times}
> \usepackage[normalem]{ulem}
> \usepackage{babel}
> 
> \geometry{verbose,paperwidth=5.5in,paperheight=8.5in}
> 
> \makeatletter
> \pdfpageheight 8.5in
> \pdfpagewidth 5.5in
> \paperheight 8.5in
> \paperwidth 5.5in
> \addtolength\topmargin{-0.25in}
> \addtolength\oddsidemargin{-0.25in}
> \addtolength\evensidemargin{-0.5in}
> \addtolength\textheight{1.25in}
> \addtolength\textwidth{0.75in}
> \setlength\headsep{12pt}
> \setlength\marginparsep{0pt}
> \setlength\marginparwidth{0pt}
> \setlength\footskip{0pt}
> 
> % \renewcommand{\aftertoctitle}{\thispagestyle{empty}\afterchaptertitle}
> 
> % Superceded by titlesec package commands
> % \makechapterstyle{nonumber}{%
> %     \renewcommand{\printchaptername}{}
> %     \renewcommand{\printchapternum}{ }
> % }
> 
> % \chapterstyle{nonumber}
> \renewcommand{\sectionmark}[1]{\markright{#1}{}}
> \renewcommand{\chaptermark}[1]{\markboth{#1}{}}
> 
> \pagestyle{myheaders}
> 
> % Original suggestion
> % http://for.mat.bham.ac.uk/pgweb/archive/2000/pgweb_academic_latex.html
> %%
> \titleformat{\chapter}[display]{\filcenter\sc\Huge}{\chaptertitlename\,\,\thechapter}{0pt}{}{}
> 
> \titleformat{\part}[display]{\filcenter\sc\Huge}{\thepart}{0pt}{}{}
> \titleformat{\chapter}[display]{\filcenter\sc\Huge}{\thechapter}{0pt}{}{}
> \titleformat{\section}[display]{\filcenter\sc\Huge}{\thesection}{0pt}{}{}
> 
> % From the titlesec package documentation:
> %% \titleformat{\chapter}[display]
> %% {...}{...}{...} % Your definitions come here
> %% [\vspace*{4pc}%
> %% \startcontents
> %% \printcontents{l}{1}{\setcounter{tocdepth}{2}}]
> 
> % Original suggestions
> % http://allmybrain.com/2007/11/20/a-few-latex-tips/
> \def\tableofcontents{\section*{\centering CONTENTS}\@starttoc{toc}}
> 
> % Next suggestions fail as undefined and the definition alternatives
> % are ineffective.
> % change section headers and page numbers to normal instead of bold font
> % \renewcommand{\cftsecfont}{
> % \normalfont
> % }
> \def\cftsecfont{\normalfont}
> % \renewcommand{\cftsecpagefont}{%
> % \normalfont
> % }
> \def\cftsecpagefont{\normalfont}
> 
> % Original suggestion
> % http://www.prashblog.com/2008/08/remove-dots-in-table-of-contents-in.html
> % Does this work?
> \renewcommand{\@dotsep}{10000}
> 
> % \renewcommand{\cftZtitlefont}{\hfill\Large\itshape}
> % \renewcommand{\cftZtitlefont}{\filcenter\sc\Huge\normalfont}
> 
> \makeatother
> 
> 
> \begin{document}
> \frontmatter
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> 
> \begin{center}
> {\fontsize{30pt}{36pt}\selectfont{
> \hfill{}\\}}
> {\fontsize{36pt}{42pt}\selectfont{S}}{\fontsize{30pt}{36pt}\selectfont{OUTH}}
> {\fontsize{36pt}{42pt}\selectfont{ S}}{\fontsize{30pt}{36pt}\selectfont{EA}}
> {\fontsize{36pt}{42pt}\selectfont{
> T}}{\fontsize{30pt}{36pt}\selectfont{ALES\\}}
> {\fontsize{36pt}{42pt}\selectfont{
> \hfill{}\\}}
> {\LARGE{
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> bla, bla, bla\ldots{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\}}
> 
> \end{center}
> \fontsize{12pt}{15pt}\selectfont{}
> 
> \newpage{}
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> 
> {\parindent=0em
> Library Publication Data.
> 
> {\LARGE{
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> bla, bla, bla\ldots{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\}}}
> 
> \newpage{}
> 
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> \markboth{SOUTH SEA TALES}{CONTENTS}
> \renewcommand{\contentsname}{CONTENTS}
> \tableofcontents
> 
> \newpage{}
> 
> \chapter*{ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS}
> \addcontentsline{toc}{chapter}{\numberline{}Acknowledgements}
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> \markboth{SOUTH SEA TALES}{ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS}
> 
> {\parindent=0em
> 
>>From the Project Gutenberg Ebook notices,\\
> http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext98/soset11.txt:\\
> 
> {\LARGE{
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> bla, bla, bla\ldots{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\}}}
> 
> \newpage{}
> 
> \mainmatter
> 
> \chapter*{THE HOUSE OF MAPUHI}
> \addcontentsline{toc}{chapter}{\numberline{1.}The House of Mapuhi}
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> \markboth{SOUTH SEA TALES}{THE HOUSE OF MAPUHI}
> \lettrine{D}{espite}
> the heavy clumsiness of her lines, the \emph{Aorai} handled easily in
> the light breeze, and her captain ran her well in before he hove to
> just outside the suck of the surf.
> 
> {\LARGE{
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> bla, bla, bla\ldots{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\}}
> 
> \newpage{}
> 
> ``Then give me something to eat, for I am hungry,'' said Nauri,
> complacently. ``And after that we will sleep, for I am weary. And
> tomorrow we will have more talk about the house before we sell the
> pearl. It will be better if we take the thousand French in cash. Money
> is ever better than credit in buying goods from the traders.''
> 
> \chapter*{THE WHALE TOOTH}
> \addcontentsline{toc}{chapter}{\numberline{2.}The Whale Tooth}
> \thispagestyle{empty}
> \markboth{SOUTH SEA TALES}{THE WHALE TOOTH}
> \lettrine{I}{t}
> was in the early days in Fiji, when John Starhurst arose in the
> mission house at Rewa Village and announced his intention of carrying
> the gospel throughout all Viti Levu.
> 
> {\LARGE{
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> bla, bla, bla\ldots{}\\
> \hfill{}\\
> \hfill{}\\}}
> 
> \end{document}
> 
> 
> Thomas Dukleth
> Agogme
> 109 E 9th Street, 3D
> New York, NY  10003
> USA
> http//www.agogme.com
> 212-674-3783
> 
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